International Maritime Organization

and How it works.

Edward Kleverlaan
IMO Technical Officer
Marine Environment Division
 International Maritime
Organization

• Specialized United Nations agency

‘Safe, secure and efficient shipping on clean oceans’

• Is the competent international organization for

regulating shipping matters (e.g. UNCLOS Art
211)
– Maintains balance between protection of the
environment and navigation rights
 Global coverage
• 168 Member States
• All major ship owning
nations
• All major port &
coastal states
• Industry Peak bodies,
and,
• IGOs and NGOs
Headquarters in London – United Kingdom
Headquarters in London – United Kingdom
 International Maritime
Organization
• Develops global regulations - maintain safety and security
of international shipping and to prevent marine pollution from
ships

• Involved in creating liability and compensation regimes

• Adopts instruments (legislation) and guidelines at the

intergovernmental level

• Member Governments are responsible for implementing

and enforcing the adopted regulatory framework.
 Instruments

• Conventions or Protocols
• Amendments to Conventions or Protocols
• Resolutions, Codes, Guidelines, Recommendations,
etc.

• The phases from adoption to implementation and

enforcement:
– Adoption, after discussion in IMO
– Entry into force internationally
– Implementation (by flag States)
– Enforcement (by port and coastal States)
 IMO at work
• Assembly
• Council
Committees
• Maritime Safety
• Marine Environment Protection
• Legal
• Technical Cooperation
• Facilitation
 Key Committees

•Maritime Safety Committee

– Safety pre-eminent
importance
• Navigation
•Marine Environment Protection Committee
– Focus pollution prevention and reposnse
– Biological concerns with aquatic nuisance
species transferred through ballast water
and biofouling
– Individual animal issues
• Ship strikes of right whales
 Sub-Committees

• Bulk Liquid and Gases

• Carriage of Dangerous Goods, Solid Cargoes and
Containers
• Fire Protection
• Flag State Implementation
• Safety of Navigation
• Ship Design and Equipment
• Stability, Load Lines and Fishing Vessel Safety
• Standards of Training and Watchkeeping
 ASSEMBLY
168 Member States, meets
every 2 years

COUNCIL
40 States, every 6 months

TCC FAL MSC MEPC LEG

SUB-COMMITTEES

SLF COMSAR
STW FP DE NAV DSC BLG FSI
 Progress of measures at IMO -
example
Incident Proposal to IMO
Committee

Idea,
development
Discussion, refer
to Sub-Committee,
Working Group
Development of draft
Regulation, circular,
Code or resolution
Adoption of
new regulation
 Respective Roles

IMO - Develop safety and environment standards

Governments - Implement/Enforce the standards

Classification Societies - Survey and Certification

Shipping Companies - Apply the standards to their ships

Shipboard Personnel - Putting standards into operation

Application to real ships
 Application to real ships
• More than 50 IMO Conventions
• More than 100 protocols, guidelines,
recommendations etc
• Almost every aspect of shipping
covered:
Design
Construction
Equipment
Maintenance
Crew
Discharges/emissions
 Safety and security
• SOLAS (Safety of life at sea)
• STCW (Training/Watch keeping)
• Load lines (Cargo safety limits)
• COLREGS (Collision avoidance)
• SUA (Suppression of Unlawful Acts)
• ISPS Code (Port Security)
 Pollution prevention
• MARPOL 73/78
• Intervention 69/73
• London Dumping 72 and
Protocol 96
• Anti-fouling 2001
• Ballast water management
2004
• Wreck removal 2004
• Ship Recycling 2009
 Search and rescue/pollution
response and compensation
•SAR
•OPRC (oil) -
•OPRC-HNS Protocol
•Liability and Compensation –
CLC; FUND; BUNKER; HNS Conv
 Uptake across the world
• SOLAS 98.79% world tonnage
• COLREGS 98.50%
• STCW 98.77%
• MARPOL(I&II) 98.34%
• MARPOL(97 Prot)74.73%

• OPRC 90 65.17%
• OPRC-HNS 17.83%
• AFSC 01 62.69%
Remember IMO instruments to
protect the marine environment
from shipping are:

– SOLAS, COLREGS (safety)

– MARPOL (operational/accidental discharges)
– Intervention Convention (threats to coast)
– Anti-fouling Systems Convention (toxic chemicals)
– Ballast Water Management Convention
(invasive species)
– OPRC (& HNS) – (oil/chemical spill) and the

London Convention/Protocol (dumping at sea of

wastes)
 MARPOL
• 6 annexes cover ship-
generated pollution (oil,
NLS, Sewage, Garbage
and air emissions)
• Ensures ships are
adequately designed,
equipped, certified and
inspected
• Requires States to deal with
wastes – reception facilities
• Applies to all ships (oil and
gas exploration exempted)
 AFS – Convention (2001)

• AIM: to reduce or
eliminate adverse
effects on the marine
environment and human
health caused by anti-
fouling systems
• Convention entered into
force on 17 September
2008
 Ballast Water Management Convention
(2004)

AIM:
Prevent, minimize and ultimately
eliminate the risks to the
environment, ……. arising from
the transfer of harmful aquatic
organisms and pathogens.

….through the control and

management of ships’ ballast
water and sediments, ….

Convention is not yet in force

OPRC Convention and the
OPRC-HNS Protocol
Basic Obligations under OPRC and Regional
Agreement:

 Establish and maintain a national response

system

 Exchange of information

 Early notification/Reporting

 Mutual assistance
• London Convention
Promote the effective control
of all sources of marine
pollution
– Contracting Parties shall take
effective measures to prevent
pollution of the marine
environment caused by
dumping at sea.
• 1996 Protocol
Protect the marine
environment from all
sources of pollution
– Contracting Parties
shall take effective
measures to prevent,
reduce and where
practicable eliminate
marine pollution
caused by dumping or
incineration of wastes
at sea.
Other International Agreements
to protect marine environment:
• Land-based pollution
Basel Convention
1989
Global Programme of
Action 1995
Atmospheric pollution
Kyoto Protocol 1992
Stockholm
Convention 2001
 Interplay between international
agreements
Sea-based inputs Land-based inputs Atmospheric inputs

UNFCCC-
UNCLOS Biodiversity GPA POP Basel
ICRI IMO Regional
Kyoto
MARPOL, agreements
OPRC,
BWM,
AFSC, etc

Healthy oceans
 Summary
IMO
• Is a specialized UN agency
• Develops global regulations to ensure that
shipping is safe, secure, efficient and
environmentally friendly
• With a global coverage for a truly global
industry and the community as a whole
Thank you for your attention

Any questions!